What is the longest time you have held your dose after...

[[os...]]

hitting a wall???

 

I am not too familiar with holding, it is still a new thing for me but this is my 10th day of holding my dose and although i thought i was stable, i am actually feeling less anxious and fearful so things are getting better...

 

My poor nervous system clearly needed a decent break.

 

How long have others typically held to feel better after over doing the tapering???

 

Do most try and stay within the 3 week that Ashton states?

 

Oscar

[[...]]

Hi Oscar,

 

I had never heard of the Ashton manual before I started tapering just knew I couldn't abruptly stop. I've always just listened to my body. As soon as I stabilize, I make the next cut. The couple times I dragged it out 2 months, I was either traveling or moving cross-country and wanted to wait…it wasn't because I didn't feel ready. I've still waited up to a month sometimes. My taper has definitely been unorthodox, but aside from my .5mg debacle, it's been relatively smooth. (Really hoping I didn't just jinx myself!) I can't imagine putting myself on a schedule with this, but I see that it is working for many.

 

Great to hear you're feeling better during your hold! Hope it continues for you!

[[os...]]

Thanks Ally.

 

You know, i have been tapering slowly (or so i thought) for 9 months yet whilst i have made adjustments on the way down, i over shot twice in the past month despite hitting a wall (my first)... little did i know that this is a sign that the body really is screaming for a break... i was not in a rush with this but at the same time i did not really want to prolong this longer than is necessary but now i think that going ultra slow and making holds is really very important to remain functional... when it is hard or impossible to carry on, going against that only brings more suffering...

 

With making weekly, bi-weekly cuts, the body at least has a break... yet the symptoms i am sure can be unpredictable but at least there is a pattern, it can be hard to know when one has over done it with daily titration until it is too late but normally damage is pretty limited yet in my case i stubbornly wanted to just get a bit lower when in fact i needed a good rest... reading your post really made me think how unflexible i was being... i knew that slow and steady was good but these drugs have a way of making one want to push on and it rarely works... our bodies never lie and mine was really fed up...

 

I was confused as to why many are so much more functional... i guess that is because there is the break in between cuts but now i have built that (properly) into my future taper, i hope to start getting back on my feet again, i want a reasonable ending to this taper... it´s just a case of managing it properly... i guess we all learn by our mistakes.

 

Oscar

[[1a...]]

i held each cut a minimum of 2 weeks even if i felt good .... only twice in my 3 month taper did i hold a little longer that was just for a day or two...

[[...]]

Oscar,

 

I definitely see how daily titration can catch up with you. It sounds like your body is trying to stabilize now, which is great! From my experience, a hold is not only smoother physically, but sets up a good mind-set going into the next cut. And like you said, there's a pattern to the symptoms, which is actually comforting to me. There seems to be truth in holding too long, also. After my two month holds, a few symptoms actually disappeared. I'm not sure if that was me healing or holding too long…probably a bit of both.

 

I was very stubborn, too, when I went off of the .5mg. I was suffering so much, but didn't want to go back on. I thought I could just push through. After realizing I was putting myself at risk for more problems in the long run, I caved and am doing it the right way…definitely learned from that mistake. I really feel for people that have so many pills left and have to make it work.

 

I'm starting titration myself after I stabilize and your post has made me aware not to accidentally get ahead of myself. Best wishes to you! I really hope the changes you make going forward are all the difference for you.

[[fi...]]

The longest time I've held a dose (thus far) is 13 months.  This was after a failed 5-day detox that really did a number on my body.  I am now listening to my body and trying not to "force" a cut.  I've done that several times before and paid a hefty price for it.

 

Good luck in your taper...

 

fg